Quality of Food

[Farts]

Very few people have been on all of the six largest mainline mass market North American cruise lines and practically no one has been on enough cruises on all six of them, recent enough to be unquestionably relevant indicators, but we can all read what people who have cruised on these cruise lines say about them. There is no compelling evidence to indicate that the six are so radically different from each other. There may be marginal differences that perhaps (often, but not always) put Carnival in the lower-price/lower-quality end of that relatively short spectrum and put Celebrity in the higher-price/higher-quality end of that relatively short spectrum. However, it is clear that none of the six cruise lines are unequivocally offering a better overall average product at a lower overall average price. This realization, for those willing to do the research to acquire it, is that whatever concerns there are about value-for-price are concerns that are relevant to the industry, overall, not any one cruise line individually. Insinuations that any such criticisms are reasonably directed at any one of these cruise lines are reasonably suspect.

While I do agree that they are more similar that different, I still think there is an enough of a noticeable difference at the lower price lower quality for cruising.

 

 

Just like there are differences between

 

toyota, honda, hondai

 

or BMW, merc, porsche

or LV, gucci, prada

 

They all sever very similar products, but there are key differences.

 

NCL - free style cruising

CCL - party boat (best night clubs)

RCCL - Idk what to say about them, lol.

 

 

For you, I guess the difference doesn't matter. For me, I really enjoy the free style cruising. I just don't like scheduling my days when I am on vacation. I like being spontaneous and just do w/e I feel like at that moment. I like being able to go to the MDR w/e I want to and eat. But I get that others need to plan ahead and have to have everything planned out 6 months b4 they even get on the cruise.

[Farts]

I think that really depends on what you order.

 

For instance, the flat iron steak is served just as you said - meat, potato, 1 spear of broccoli.

 

 

But the lamb shank? Nope. A variety of vegetables and a tasty sauce.

 

 

Same with the Vegetarian portebello mushroom dish - lovely cream sauce, sweet potato and nicely seasoned dish.

 

 

And yes, these are from the Sunshine - May 29-June 3 2017.

 

Thanks for the pics. I can make that work. I would just order like 2-3 iron flat steaks w/ no sides, assuming that the cuts are too chewy.

[Micahs Grandad]

You jogged a vital memory. Tip coming!

 

I love my eggs in the morning. On Dream in 2014 I believe it was, the first two days I waited in a (usually short) line for scrambled. But it was hardly worth the wait, because the eggs were premixed for scrambling and not as tasty as I expected.

 

On the third day I mumbled a grumble while waiting in line. Somebody overheard and told me, "If you want fresh unbroken eggs, just ask." I did, and the cook reached down and pulled up two beautiful white whole eggs and broke them in the pan for me. After that I noticed a lot of other people were doing the same, asking for and getting fresh/unbroken eggs.

 

Thanks who knew. Now to find out how to get freshly toasted bread and home fries.

[Moonarino]

Thanks who knew. Now to find out how to get freshly toasted bread and home fries.

 

I sympathize. For the record, that was the first time I'd encountered pre-mixed eggs. On all other CCL cruises the short-order was good to great by default.

[DrLookGood]

I'm just off Sensation and I have mixed feelings. My last Carnival cruise was 3 years ago. My two recent ones were on RCI and Celebrity.

 

No matter how you slice it, Celebrity by far wins both in terms of food quality and service. It always did for me (but it comes at the price premium).

 

RCI didn't offer anything edible to me on Lido, but their steaks in MDR were edible.

 

I enjoyed Blue Igana, made to order sandwiches and pizza on Lido. Carnival definitely got those right. I didn't partake in buffet. The lines and the offerings didn't appeal to me at all.

 

Most of appetizers, sides and deserts in MDR were good on Carnival. But main entree - not edible most of the times. From now on I will avoid any and all beef dishes in MDR. I didn't finish any of them after the first bite. The steak was just gross. On my last night, I simply ordered Caesar salad and whipped potatoes as my main. I couldn't find anything appealing on the menu.

 

And yes, the food in MDR has gone down hill since the first time I cruised in 2009. On all lines. However, the prices have not increased. And Carnival brought many good choices to Lido.

 

PS. I didn't go hungry on my cruise. Even though I never took elevator (including dragging my suitcase two flights of stairs on debarkation day) and skipped eating main entree in MDR, I still gained 10 lbs on my cruise (I had Cheers and got my money worth at Alchemy bar - another innovation Carnival got right).

[CBuick]

I have honestly never tried the flat iron steak. I have liked everything else they have served on the MDR menu. The twice a week prime rib is always very good. I believe they also had a night with Grilled Beef Tenderloin on my last cruise - that was good. There is also a dual of Filet Mignon and short ribs that is decent. I am not going to say there aren't a couple of misses now and then, but all in all I think the hits outnumber them. I have done the upcharges a couple of times and those are pretty reasonably priced at $20. I remember the RCL upcharge being higher and the item I ordered being dissapointing (I do have to work on my RCL hate :) )

[Micahs Grandad]

I sympathize. For the record, that was the first time I'd encountered pre-mixed eggs. On all other CCL cruises the short-order was good to great by default.

 

Princess has a much better breakfast buffet. First you order your eggs freshly made and go to table hand the slip to crewmember who than brings back your omelet. Will also get your drinks

 

They are able to make toast as needed not hours before. and homefries are actually rather warm.

[cthrn27]

What I do know for sure is that food almost always tastes better when I'm not the one shopping, cooking, serving, clearing the table, and washing the dishes:D:D

This is SO true. Add an ocean view and a tropical drink and almost anything can be enjoyed.:D

[SMSACE6]

I have never had a big problem with the food on Carnival cruises/ships. Only a few times I think that I should have returned something to the kitchen, ie once chateau briand was so tough, I could not cut it with my fork and knife, and another time "fish and chips" had so much breading, which was cold and yet the fish inside was warm and edible, fresh tasting. Both times the waiter noticed what I left on my plate and practically begged to bring something else, but I just preferred to order coffee and a desert . I also have no problem with the food offerings on Carnival lido buffet, and that includes, breakfast, lunch and dinner. Have done them all on lido from time to time. I can pretty much tell by the look of something that i wont like it, and rarely venture there. I know what I like and that is simple food, and there is plenty of that. I am not a foodie, not a gourmet cook nor do I often dine in 4 or 5 star restaurants. Times when I have, I have usuallly been disappointed. Like regular food, and Carnival delivers on that for me! There is lots recently on Carnival cruises that have disappointed me, but food is not one of those things.

[Techman360]

We were on the Sunshine a few weeks ago which was incidentally our first cruise ever. I thought the MDR food was pretty good but will admit I shared the same thought the first night of the "Applebee's" plate when all I received was a few pieces of broccoli, something else and a flat iron steak. It was the following night I realized there was sides an sauces in a separate section but I wouldn't try those until the third night since i did the Junkaroo (probably not spelled correctly) seafood dish the second night. Adding a side and sauce made a difference to the flat iron steak the third night though the cut of meat was low on fat and a little tough. We do a lot of flat iron steak at home since its cheap and flavorful with the right rub. The buffet was done on the first night and that was not my thing at all. I have never been a big buffet person for dinners so I wasn't expecting to enjoy it anyway. After the first buffet pass I was pointed to the deli and promptly got a Rueben from there instead. Breakfast was pretty good on the Lido buffet and I didn't even mind the eggs as I have definitely have had worse in hotels on business trips. Finally the Italian restaurant was good and we enjoyed the pizza place, deli, Blue Iguana and of course Guys. After reading all the stories on food here from long time cruisers, I was actually very satisfied with what the ship had to offer.

[ReillyPup]

I find the food fairly the same across the three lines I've travelled. That being said carnival has the best chocolate cake in the MDR

 

 

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[ReillyPup]

As you can tell in my signature I’ve not been particularly loyal to any one line. I’m starting to have a few “theories” about cruise food:

 

 

 

1. If your food arrives fresh from the kitchen, it’s more likely to be good. If it sits on the waiter’s station while you or someone at your table is finishing a course, or because the two large tables next to you are being served, the quality will suffer. My main complaint about the “New American Table” on Carnival is that it seems designed to allow them to serve in the dining room with a smaller staff. That just exacerbates this problem. If you find a waiter who can give you prompt service each night, you’ll probably be happier.

 

 

 

2. The food will never again be like what I keep hearing it was in the 1980s, because the lines won’t spend the money on it.

 

 

 

3. There seems to be as much variation in quality between the ships of a given line as there is between the various lines, so I’m becoming less convinced that, overall, any mass-market line has “better” food than another. I’d be more tempted to ask what the food is like on a particular ship.

 

 

 

So if anyone has any tips or reports for dining on the Carnival Pride, I’d like to hear it because I’ll be there in October. I would be highly surprised if it’s quite as good as on the newer flagships, though, so I don’t expect the Pride to have great food just because the Dream does.

 

 

 

I'm going on the pride in October too. As long as they have chocolate melting cake every day I won't starve

 

 

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[CBuick]

 

So if anyone has any tips or reports for dining on the Carnival Pride, I’d like to hear it because I’ll be there in October. I would be highly surprised if it’s quite as good as on the newer flagships, though, so I don’t expect the Pride to have great food just because the Dream does.

 

I will also be on the Pride in October. I should point out that Pride is one of the top 5 rated Carnival ships, and has both a high ratio of crew to passengers and tonnage to passengers. I felt the American Table menu was as good as any other Carnival Ship if not better. There was a table mate that had only done Princess cruises, and he was a little disapointed - though he and his wife did seem to be very apt to complain about anything. I will say the Dining Demonstration on the Pride was the best of any ship I have been on.

 

I don't think the MDR or typical venue quality will be any different from a larger or newer ship - I do like the design of the Normandie Dining Room. The main difference between the Pride and other ships is the venues not offered. For instance Vista has a more extensive Bonsai Menu. Both Sunshine and Vista have the excellent Ji Jis, and every ship Magic and newer have the Cucina De Capitano. Pride also lacks a more comprehensive Red Frog Menu and Seafood Shack. Pride also has the same buffet as most other Carnival ships. I believe only the Sunshine, Vista and Dream classes have the newer Comfort Kitchen - which I prefer over the international themed Chefs Choice. The last thing that Pride lacks is a Mongolian Grille. Instead they have a buffet area called Chopsticks. Some of the choices at Chopsticks were great, others not so much. I only ordered the mild sauce at the Mongolian Grille, so it is a bit more variety and alot less wait time. They have a Guy's and a Blue Iganna, and even the complaint couple admitted those two venues were good.

 

But yes, my belief is that Pride's apples to apples comparison to newer ships in food will be as good if not better.

[ORB]

Oh, I certainly don't expect to go hungry. I've yet to lose weight on a cruise!

[Farts]

Good luck.

If there are no CCL discounts, then it's no big deal. I will just keep cruising w/ whoever meets my needs at that time.

[Towel Critter]

I've read through this entire thread and the consensus seems to be the food isn't as good as it used to be but is by and large still edible. I can't say I disagree with this. I've only been served something once on a Carnival ship I couldn't eat (and was probably wise not to). It was a lobster tail that tasted faintly of ammonia. I assume it was either bad or going bad. Other than that, everything I've tasted has been slightly below average to very good.

[Court Jester]

We were on the Vista. It was our first Carnival Cruise in years. The food in both the MDR and buffet was fair at best. The flat iron steaks in the MDR were tiny, overdone, and bland, no better than your local $12 steak at a family restaurant. How anyone can rave about Carnivals food is beyond me. Food on NCL was way better last year and their steaks in the MDR were real flavorful steaks with size and flavor, not like the 5oz ones Carnival gives you,

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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[bUU]

... no better than your local $12 steak at a family restaurant.

Considering what we know about how much the cruise lines spend on food per passenger per day (much less that $12 for three entire meals) that's actually impressive.

 

You have a choice whether to pay more to get better. What was your choice?

 

This message may have been entered using voice recognition. Please excuse any typos.

[Drazil65]

As you know and can see from all the replies, food is subjective....and you will gravitate towards what you generally like to eat anyway...

[LuckyZ]

It has gone downhill fast.

 

I hate to say it, but I think I must agree.

 

For me, I used to get excited about going to MDR for dinner and opening up the menu and getting excited about what I wanted to select (and sometimes struggling on what to select)

 

But on cruises over the last few years, I can't say I've been excited about dinner and quite frankly, my dinner selection has been more about biological need to eat, and struggling to pick something that I want to eat. Don't get me wrong, the quality of the food isn't too bad, but it just doesn't have that flare for me that it used to have 5-10+ years ago

 

PS - I agree with the warm chocolate melting cake comments. It does seem to mask the lower quality of the meal

Edited July 4, 2017 by LuckyZ
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[easy1969]

I did not start cruising till 2010 but have been on 10 since and have 2 more booked.

the largest cutback imo is doing away with the tablecloths and going to the American Table theme.

as far as quality of food I see no difference during the time I have been cruising but only have experience back to 2010.

[IntrepidFromDC]

I did not start cruising until late 2013, but have been on 9 (one leaving on 7/16).

 

The food has always been substandard, but food is not why I select Carnival. Carnival is obviously aware that many cruisers are not happy with substandard food, and developed the Steakhouse for us, which is delicious every time and with good variety. I do miss the tablecloths, and the cutbacks in the waitstaff/cruiser ratio in the MDR.

 

Since 2013 I have noticed a decrease in food quality in MDR, but not significant. The waitstaff is much more rushed than they were just three years ago judging by my experience and that is a decrease in service - I also chalk up the lack of tablecloths as a decrease in service (the tablecloths don't put themselves on the tables, after all). Waitstaff effort has not decreased, but the service level has. Fun, value, service and staff attitude is what makes Carnival our go-to. Food, not so much.

[jimbo5544]

I did not start cruising until late 2013, but have been on 9 (one leaving on 7/16).

 

The food has always been substandard, but food is not why I select Carnival. Carnival is obviously aware that many cruisers are not happy with substandard food, and developed the Steakhouse for us, which is delicious every time and with good variety. I do miss the tablecloths, and the cutbacks in the waitstaff/cruiser ratio in the MDR.

 

Since 2013 I have noticed a decrease in food quality in MDR, but not significant. The waitstaff is much more rushed than they were just three years ago judging by my experience and that is a decrease in service - I also chalk up the lack of tablecloths as a decrease in service (the tablecloths don't put themselves on the tables, after all). Waitstaff effort has not decreased, but the service level has. Fun, value, service and staff attitude is what makes Carnival our go-to. Food, not so much.

 

 

 

LOL, what the heck is substandard?

 

 

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[IntrepidFromDC]

LOL, what the heck is substandard?

 

I'm not sure if you're asking for a definition or illustration. the definition is pretty obvious "sub" "standard", below the standard or below the median benchmark.

 

It looks like this:

 

[jimbo5544]

Oh, I get it now..... Your right that is def sub standard.......must be a full moon, I will wait for dark to confirm.

 

 

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